During their many years in education, Brighton Superintendent Greg Gray and High School Principal Gavin Johnson have encountered a lot of teens with illegal substances.

But both agree that those contraband items pale in comparison to the current trend of vaping.

“It’s a total nightmare for us,” Johnson said. “As a principal for 20 years, I’ve never seen something come on this strong and fast. It’s an epidemic. I think probably half of our students have tried a vape.”

Johnson and Gray are hoping local municipalities, including the City of Brighton and Green Oak and Genoa townships, will pass ordinances to help address the problem of teenage vaping.

Gray told the Brighton City Council last week that the lack of laws regulating e-cigarettes has left the district in a lurch. He asked city officials to draft an ordinance that would impose fees on teenagers caught vaping and a misdemeanor charge on those caught selling vaping products. Currently, district officials only have suspension as a deterrent in either scenario.

“I’ve never seen anything transpire this fast,” Gray said. “Our goal is to not have kids out of school. We have seen fines with civil infractions, and the ability to move kids through a cessation program as more effective than taking them out of school. It’s crazy to throw kids out of school, especially if they are at risk. The goal is to get them to quit using and bringing it to school and teach them the negative effects.”

Vaping, or e-cigarettes, have replaced traditional cigarettes among many teens in the last two or three years, Johnson said, due to a widely held misconception that they are safer. He likens kids who vape, inhaling heated liquids that can contain nicotine, THC and other chemicals, to “guinea pigs” as the long-term health repercussions are unknown.

Vaping is against school policy, and students caught vaping are subject to suspension, but the action is often difficult to detect. The electronic device which heats wax or oil substances can look like a memory stick, or lipstick or a battery charger. The smells emitted from the device often smell like candy, cologne or perfume.

Johnson and School Resource Officer Chris Parks said students are vaping everywhere on school grounds, including in the bathrooms, the hallways, and even the classrooms.

“With one hitters, it’s a puff of smoke, they do it right in front of you and unless you knew what to look for, they can get by with it,” Parks said. “We’re not catching nearly as many because they are getting so good at hiding it.”

Parks said the ordinance is needed, and even more urgently if Proposal 1 passes on Tuesday, legalizing recreational marijuana for those over the age of 21.

“Come Tuesday, who knows what will happen,” he said. “My concern is THC oil coming up, but it’s hard to send to the lab because they are so overloaded. After Tuesday, I think we will deal much more with THC.”

The Brighton school officials' request for a city ordinance regarding teenage vaping follows the Howell City Council unanimously passing a vaping ordinance last month at the request of Howell school officials.

The Howell ordinance subjects anyone under the age of 18 caught by police with alternative nicotine or vaping products to a misdemeanor criminal charge, and a $50 fine. The ordinance language also dictates that retail shops that sell tobacco, alternative nicotine or vapor products must put a sign from the local health department in a conspicuous place that states selling these products to a minor under 18 years old is prohibited.

Brighton Councilmember Jon Emaus said he had “significant concerns” with the commercial perspective of the Howell ordinance.

“I am all for giving the district tools to deal with vaping on school property,” Emaus said. “I don’t think Howell differentiates well between school property and city property.”

He added that the whole point of juvenile justice is to rehabilitate kids, “not put an albatross around their neck.” He stressed there should be different penalties for use and sales.

Mayor Jim Muzzin voiced similar sentiments.

“A bad mistake doesn’t make a bad kid, I hope we all know that,” he said. “I hope they don’t have a record (for vaping), that is where my fear comes. Should there be penalty that hurts pocketbook? We are probably penalizing the parent, but if we’re getting message to them, I am OK with that.”

City staff expects to craft an ordinance to be brought back to council by early January.